Sacramento Kings: 5 reasons to be excited for 2019-20 NBA season

2. A defined role for Bogdan Bogdanovic

Bogdan Bogdanovic was a swiss army knife for the Kings last year, spending time playing positions 1-through-4. Predominantly a bench player having only started 17 games, Bogdanovic found himself plugging holes rather than cementing a position.

Regardless of where he played on the floor, he contributed. Ending the season with 14.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game, he shot  41.8 percent from the field and 36.0 percent from deep. Interestingly, Bogdanovic also finished in the 90th percentile for usage rate when on the floor — 23.3 percent — while he assisted on 19.8 percent of passes he made which is good for the 94th percentile in the league.

Not having a defined position within the rotation did hurt Bogdanovic in terms of shooting accuracy though. His corner three percentage fell 13 points compared to the previous season down from 50 to 37 percent. His short and mid-range shooting were also affected, which is shocking considering his shot attempts increased last year.

Players tend to perform better when they have a defined role within a system, as Bogdanovic did during the 2017-18 season. No surprise that his rookie year was statistically better than last year, because he had a defined role when he was a rookie.

With the additions the Kings have made this summer, Bogdanovic projects to become the second-string shooting guard behind Buddy Hield. Having a defined role allows a player to understand his sets, to scout his opposition better and to foster trust amongst the players he will be sharing the court with.

Bogdanovic’s ability to be a threat from deep or split the defense with a killer pass will ensure he is successful against almost any teams second unit. He will provide firepower and playmaking off the bench consistently if provided the chance to make the two-guard position his own.